next year ray fosse?

i think most collectors agree that stadium club brings the best photos to the hobby, from a full set perspective, at least.  this year, there are many great photos featured, even before you get to the short printed photo variations.  one card that has stood out to many is harmon killebrew's.

it's an odd photo, but that is part of stadium club's charm.  it is so unusual, however, that i decided i would try to figure out the circumstances of the photo.  i'm sure many others have done the same, but if you don't know the story behind the photo, read on.

i figured that it wasn't a case of clubhouse cart races, and that was true. the big clue was the person to killebrew's right that is wearing an astros jacket.  

more specifically, it is an astros jacket with their old astrodome logo.

a quick search of baseball reference shows that the 1968 all-star game was played in houston in the "eighth wonder of the world", and killebrew was the starting first baseman.  he popped out in his at bat in the second inning against don drysdale and then was removed from the game during the bottom of the third after recording the putout on a curt flood groundout.  it turns out that killebrew was replaced in the game by boog powell because he had been injured on the previous play. more specifically he heard his right hamstring "snap like a rubber band" while stretching for the throw from jim fregosi to retire flood.

i did not know about this injury, but apparently it was pretty severe and many blamed the field for the injury (killebrew's leg slipped on the dirt in the cutout of the astroturf).  here's a better writeup, with video! 

weird to see an injury related photo on a baseball card, but at least topps didn't use a photo of killebrew being taken off the field on the stretcher!